FAQ

A single-stair apartment building is a small residential building where all apartments are served by one enclosed exit stair, rather than two.

These buildings typically include:

• 4–6 stories
• One protected exit stair
• An elevator
• A small number of homes per floor
• Full sprinkler coverage and modern fire-safety systems

Single-stair does not mean walk-up only. Most modern single-stair buildings are fully accessible.

Yes.
In nearly all modern single-stair codes, elevators are either required or strongly expected, especially for buildings above three stories.

Many adopted codes include:

• Elevator shaft pressurization, or
• Protected elevator lobbies, or
• Both stair and elevator treated as part of the fire safety strategy

This ensures:

• Accessibility for residents
• Safe firefighter access
• Redundancy for vertical movement during emergencies

Single-stair does not mean single-access.

No.

Single-stair reforms:

• Do not change zoning
• Do not override height limits
• Do not allow high-rises
• Apply only where apartments are already allowed

Zoning still determines where buildings can be built. Single-stair rules only affect how safely small apartment buildings are designed, often alongside elevators.

Two-stair requirements became common in the mid-20th century, before:

• Modern sprinkler systems
• Elevator smoke control
• Today’s understanding of fire behavior

At the time, stair redundancy was a simple safety proxy. Today, safety relies on multiple coordinated systems, including elevators designed to remain usable for emergency operations.

Yes. When built under modern codes, single-stair buildings meet strong life-safety standards.

They typically include:

• Full-building sprinklers
• Very short distances to the stair
• Fire-rated and often pressurized stairs
• Fire-rated corridors and self-closing doors
• Elevators with smoke protection measures

A Minnesota fire safety study found that features like sprinklers, compartmentalization, and reduced travel distance have a greater impact on life safety than stair count alone.

No.

North Carolina’s proposal aligns with national practice:

• Similar height limits
• Similar unit limits
• Full sprinklers
• Fire-rated stairs and corridors
• Short travel distances
• Elevator protection requirements

The state is matching what other jurisdictions have already adopted safely.

Single-stair apartment buildings are already legal in:

• Seattle, Washington
• New York City
• Honolulu, Hawaii
• Nashville, Tennessee
• Austin, Texas
• Baltimore, Maryland
• Denver, Colorado
• Montana (statewide)

Research compiled by centerforbuilding.org documents how these reforms have been adopted through normal legislative and code processes.

Requiring two stairs in small buildings:

• Increases construction costs
• Forces longer hallways and inefficient layouts
• Makes elevator-equipped small buildings harder to finance

Single-stair buildings:

• Use space more efficiently
• Support family-sized units
• Reduce per-unit construction cost
• Make small, elevator-served apartment buildings feasible

Single-stair housing:

• Is fully accessible and typically includes elevators
• Is already legal and built across the U.S.
• Meets modern fire-safety standards
• Supports small, neighborhood-scale housing

North Carolina’s effort reflects a growing national consensus:
safe, accessible buildings can be designed in more than one way.